UPDATE 8/25: The ballots are in! Thank you to all who voted for participating in the vote regarding the bylaws revisions. Church membership voted overwhelmingly in favor of the changes to the bylaws – fifty-four members voted in total: fifty voted in favor of the revisions; three did not approve of the revisions; and one […]
View PostSubmit a Prayer Request
Do you need prayer in this stressful time? Our prayer team and leaders would love to pray for you. Whether it’s for physical, financial, emotional, spiritual or other needs, let us know what’s going on with you. And, honestly, if things are going well for you, we’d love to hear about that too! Submit as […]
View Post prayerCourage, Sympathy, and the Love of God
In the preface of his book The Problem of Pain, C. S. Lewis wrote: “When pain is to be borne, a little courage helps more than much knowledge, a little human sympathy more than much courage, and the least tincture of the love of God more than all.” When I was very young, my grandmother told me […]
View PostHelping Opportunities
As you may already know, we’ve been reaching out to local charities and non-profits to find out if there’s ways that we as a church could be helpful to them during this outbreak. We’ve heard from a number of organizations; while they’re grateful for the support and that we contacted them, they’re either not allowing […]
View PostDifferent Methods, Same Purpose
The world around us seems to be stuck in a tug-of-war between two inescapable crisis needs: restrictive measures to avoid the spread of a still little-understood virus, and restorative measures to avoid economic collapse. In both cases lives and livelihoods are at stake. In both cases the goal is to safe-guard people. Local and national authorities will continue to […]
View PostAnnual Meeting Results & Annual Report
The results of the 2020 Annual Meeting Vote are in! All votes were unanimously approved / affirmed, with the exception of the elder term extensions and Chairman, which received one vote in the negative. There were 48 people in total that voted. This means that: The 2020 / 2021 Budget is approved We have two […]
View PostThrough Many Dangers, Toys and Snails…
Dear First Free Family, Last night Ruth and I played “pictionary” (a game like charades, but drawing the clues) via a video conference call with five friends from church. The theme was “things you’re doing around the house during the pandemic!” I’m not sure what was more funny, Ruth attempting to draw “cooking a meal […]
View PostWomen’s Devotional
Our Women’s Ministry team sent out a devotional earlier this week from Gloria Grell. You can read it here. If you’d like to receive future emails and prayer encouragements from our women’s ministry team, sign up by emailing women@firstfree.com.
View PostMr Rogers & Jesus
Greetings First Free Family, In an effort to contain the spread of Covid19, and for the safety of all citizens, Governor Pritzker has issued a “shelter in place” safety order to begin today, Saturday, March 21 and running through Tuesday, April 7. As church leaders we encourage you to cooperate fully and respectfully. According to […]
View PostUpdate on First Free Gatherings and Encouragement in an Uncertain Time

Dear First Free Family, The Elders met on Monday, March 16th and had a robust meeting filled with much conversation, prayer, and business. It was a sweet time of unity as we sought the Spirit’s guidance together and made plans during these difficult and uncertain times. Nevertheless, we look to the future with hope, despite […]
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